Unidentified Beetle??
Hi,
I need help identifying this beetle. I looked through the beetles on your site and couldn’t find one quite like this one. I started seeing larvae in our bedroom in late September. (About the time my antique bedroom suite came back from being refinished and stored in a warehouse. I was worried that they came with the bed.) The larvae looked similar to carpet beetle larvae. In fact the people who came to spray suggested that is what they were. Then they started to get larger. They are now crawling around the house. (They are not in any cabinets.) We had them come spray again and they could not identify the bug. We clean and vacuum all the time and they seem to keep coming back. Can you help us identify the bug so that we get rid of it? We live in a rural area near Memphis, Tennessee. The bug varies in size from .5 centimeter to 1.5 centimeters. The legs have are brown and varied. Please help! My son will be crawling soon and I want these critters gone!
Thanks!
Laura

Hi Laura,
The insects in your photo are Earwigs, not Beetles. They often enter homes, being attracted to lights, but they are basically harmless. The pincers can give a slight nip, but really can’t break the skin.

Update from Eric Eaton (01/04/2006)
” The earwigs are ringlegged earwigs, a pretty common, flightless species in urban areas.”

WTB? is Chastised!!!

earwig carnage answer
Mr. Bugman,
I am almost totally impressed by your site and your knowledge. Way cool nonetheless. “Almost” because I’m a bit disappointed by your answer to the person in Tennessee who hired a pest sprayer who couldn’t even identify an earwig (not high standards there fer sure). It seemed like a teaching moment, especially since she was more concerned about the presence of a harmless insect than the fact that she is spraying her house needlessly with a baby around. And she shouldn’t be hiring a total ignoramous to deal with her bug issues. Or maybe the carpet bug ID was a deliberate ruse to encourage her to spray.
Dave Tamayo
Sacramento, CA

Perplexed
Hi, and thank you for taking the time to read this email.
I noticed a small (maybe 1/4") insect on the tip of a thorn of a small cactus in my back yard a couple weeks ago. I didn’t think much of it, but decided to take a close-up photo of it last Sunday; after reviewing the photo, I was shocked to see that the insect was in fact impaled! Since that time, I’ve wondered how this could have happened. I sent an email, including the same attached photos (two different cameras), to an entomologist at a local university and received the following response: "The earwig you see impaled could have been blown by the wind. They have been very strong lately. I see this with winged male ants after a mating flight. Great photos!" With all due respect to the PhD. who replied to my question, I still don’t see how this could have happened, even in a high-wind environment (in my estimation, the winds haven’t been THAT strong in So. Cal.). Also, notice that the earwig is impaled on a vertical thorn, meaning that the wind gust which led to its demise had to be strong enough to lift it off the ground then pound it down on the thorn with sufficient force to pierce its hardened thorax… incredible. I’m totally perplexed. I would be interested to hear whatever thoughts or opinions you may have about this. As I told the PhD. at Cal Poly Pomona, this is not a joke or an altered photo, and no one goes into my back yard other than me. Thanks again for your time,
Richard Marr
San Dimas, CA

Hi Richard,
First of all, we don’t think our art degrees can stack up to a PhD in Entomology, but we do have another thought. The wind or some other freak accident of nature could be responsible, and I doubt if you have the resources to call in the CSI to see if foul play could be afoot. Our theory is a bird. Some birds, including we believe jays (and shrikes), are known to impail insects on thorns and return for a meal later. That is the best we can offer.

Update (03/29/2006)
Hi bugman. The SHRIKES- either Loggerhead or Northern – frequently impale insects on twigs and thorns as a way of “putting food aside for later”. Both species can be found in CA in winter.
Jill

unknown critter
Hello WTB,
After an hour of surfing the web and looking at hundreds of pictures of bugs I am still yet to learn what kind of bug I found crawling around my apartment. I am coming to you in search of answers. I noticed this particular insect when I was cleaning my room the other day and became extremely curious as to what kind of bug this is, considering I have never seen it before. It is no longer than a thumbnail. It’s body is black, but it’s legs are a very light brown color (almost transparent). It’s body is oddly shaped and has a pincher or "claw" on it’s backside. I will say that it is a very strong critter because it took a lot more than I expected to kill it (I know, I know, I probably shouldn’t have killed it, but I did not know what it was and it creeped me out). I assume that it uses it’s "claw" to catch things to eat because before it died I poked it’s pincher with a small wooden skewer and it closed its pincher on the skewer. Any information you might have as to what this insect may be will be oh so helpful to me.
Thank you,
Deborah
PS- I found it on my bedroom floor away not near an outside door. My location is in Lafayette, Louisiana if that is to any help. I also attached a sketch I drew of the specimen with a sketch of a fingernail file for reference to the size of the insect. Thanks again.

Hi Deborah,
We love your rendering of an Earwig. Those pincers are known as forceps and they do grasp prey as well as performing other tasks. They are omniverous feeders, sometimes doing damage in gardens. They love our roses. They are often attracted indoors, but are generally outdoor critters.

what type of earwig is this?
Not knowing the first things about insects other than I see them everyday, this one caught my attention for some reason. After reading little about insects and more specifically earwigs within the past hour I was even more intrigued by this little guy. I read that they are nocturnal and look for dark moist areas to rest in during the day. When in fact this guy was actively pursuing another (live) bug in the hot south texas sun. The temperature is about 95 degrees and the sun is bearing down making the walkways a hundred plus. What was he doing “hunting” in the middle of the morning? Even more, what was he doing up in the hot sun? I also couldn’t help but notice that in comparison to all the artistic renderings as well as photos of earwigs, this guy is a little different. his circi (word I just learned by the way) is exceptionally longer and larger than any photo I have found. The tip is also different in that he has “hooks” at the end. This said, I was hoping you could help me identify this particular earwig. He is every bit 2″ in total length. Maybe he is a Texas Earwig. Little humor there. Thanks in advance for your response. If the pic does not open just throw a .jpg at the end. Sometimes my mac is contrary sending files to others. Thanks,
Andrew Harris

Hi Andrew,
When we need a real expert, we just write to Eric Eaton. He was very excited about your image and would like to see it posted on BugGuide, if you don’t mind. Here is his reply: ” Wow! Stupendous image of a linear earwig, Doru lineare. We could use this image on bugguide if the contributor wants to share. Very cool. “

What’s this bug?
This is probably a common bug but I’ve never seen one before. It was on my front door here in Philadelphia. Does it use the tail to attack? If so what kind of enemies would it face? Thanks guys!
eFertLIS

Dear eFertLIS
You have sent in a photo of a common Earwig. They fly and are attracted to lights. Those foreceps can give a mild nip, but will not break the skin. They are used to catch and manipulate prey as well as to fend off enemies. Your Earwig is male European earwig, Forficula auricularia. Trophy male with those forceps!

Found bug crawling out from a crack in my wall, the house it like 50 or so years old….. Live in Kentucky it is light brown six legs antennas and pinchers on the back, it can curl up and when it flips over its lighter brown torwards the front of it. Thanks

Dear Kentucky,
I believe you have an earwig which can get quite plentiful in damp locations. We have additional information on our site.

Greetings,
We have this weird bug in the house that I have not been able to identify in any of the "household pest" lists, so maybe you can help.
It’s a warm weather bug, starts out small (1/2 inch) at the beginning of the season and now is an inch to an inch and half. They seem to come out mostly at night, but we have seen a few during the day. The body has 2 segments, blackish brown with lighter colored legs on each side and can crawl fairly fast across the carpet or up on the walls. The weirdest part is a tail that looks kind of like a crab claw or a pincher that’s the same color of the legs. It can be up or down, open or closed. I believe they originally came from the outside like the lady bugs and the box-elder bugs, but once they got in, they haven’t left. We don’t see them in the winter, but I don’t think they’ve actually left; they’re probably just dormant then. Any info would be helpful. Thank you for your time and attention,
–Julie

Hi Julie,
You have earwigs. We at What’s That Bug have gotten many questions about earwigs since beginning this column. They belong to the order Dermaptera.
They frequent debris piles, stacks of lumber, compost piles and rocks that can be overturned. It is believed that their common name originates from the Anglo-Saxon word earwicga (ear worm) since they often found their way into the ears of sleepers on straw mattresses in sod huts. Their outstanding physical characteristic is the forcep pincers on the rear end of the abdomen. Earwigs are active a night. They can be attracted to lights and one species in particular, the European Earwig (Forficula auricularia), which has wings that are hidden under wing shields, is often a nuisance indoors. Despite having wings, they rarely fly, preferring to keep the wings hidden from view and to scuttle about in the dark. Though earwigs have an undeserved reputation for being garden pests since they sometimes chew tender young plants, they prefer to eat other insects, and are, in fact, beneficial. I think an internet search for earwig will provide you with photos that support my identification.